This may be the silliest response you've received thus far but my mantra is, I'd rather have it and not need it, than need it and not have it! Last night I bought a14 JGC and went with the Summit for this exact reason. Buyers remorse is a b*tch!

On another note, since I'm the newbie around here, I hope I'm not violating any TOS for using asterisks in what would otherwise be curse words.

Yes. The last few years I have noticed a tremendous increase in fools who keep driving past behind me when I've already started to back out of parking spaces. You can't look everywhere and in both directions at once, but the computerized system can and does. It also helps with any blind spot traffic on the freeway. Yes, I do know how to adjust mirrors, but fools who cut between lanes with no signals can come out of nowhere. To give perspective, I live in southern California, and drive all over the region approximately 23,000+ miles per year.

I've had my GC overland v8 w/tech for just over a week. I believe the blind spot monitoring is the best safety development i've seen in 23 years of driving. i don't find the GC to have a huge blind spot and i still glance over my shoulder as well as check the mirror but i am firm believer in the more information you have when driving the better. It is unobtrusive and so far very very reliable. Like you, I live and drive around long island daily. the number of moronic, hyper aggressive drivers who jump lanes constantly and accelerate past on the southern state especially is ridiculous. after only having it for a week, i probably will never buy a car/suv without it again. i am also trying to push for my mother to trade in her pristine 6 yr old x5 just so she can get a car that has it. i may sound like i'm overstating it, but for where we live and drive, i think it's fantastic. the back out sensor for all our parking lots is great as well. i'll prob never use the adaptive cruise and i've toned down the front collision warning, but i would pay the $50 a month for the blind spot monitoring in a heartbeat.

I've had my GC overland v8 w/tech for just over a week. I believe the blind spot monitoring is the best safety development i've seen in 23 years of driving. i don't find the GC to have a huge blind spot and i still glance over my shoulder as well as check the mirror but i am firm believer in the more information you have when driving the better. It is unobtrusive and so far very very reliable. Like you, I live and drive around long island daily. the number of moronic, hyper aggressive drivers who jump lanes constantly and accelerate past on the southern state especially is ridiculous. after only having it for a week, i probably will never buy a car/suv without it again. i am also trying to push for my mother to trade in her pristine 6 yr old x5 just so she can get a car that has it. i may sound like i'm overstating it, but for where we live and drive, i think it's fantastic. the back out sensor for all our parking lots is great as well. i'll prob never use the adaptive cruise and i've toned down the front collision warning, but i would pay the $50 a month for the blind spot monitoring in a heartbeat.

QT

Thanks for all the replies. I think I am sold. QT I agree, also One drive on the grand central by laguardia would probably warrant the cost on the safety end.

Allow me to offer the other perspective. I don't mean any of the following as an insult to any of the previous posters - and I can't argue that the system doesn't work or doesn't have its merits. It does.

But I'm still firmly in the camp of "I'd rather not have it." That's not just about saving the money. I'm afraid of becoming complacent and/or another of the ever-increasing hoard of distracted drivers on the road. And these Jeeps do offer plenty of toys to distract.

But, and I'm being serious (and again, not trying to be insulting), consider taking that ~$2,000 and spending it on some quality driver training. We all think we're great drivers. High Performance Driving Events (HPDE) present opportunities to AT LEAST hone our skills and push our limits in a controlled environment. A good HPDE / instructor will teach vehicle control, as well as intangibles like the importance of being observant and trying to predict what might lead to an accident so that you're more ready to deal with a situation before it starts.

For example, does the FCW system consider whether or not someone is tailgating YOU before it applies max brakes when it detects that you might hit something? A trained driver will always know his/her surroundings and knows that swerving to avoid is most often a better option than aggressive braking - ESPECIALLY if the guy less than a car-length behind your SUV can't see or predict that you're about to nail the brakes.

But what do I know, I have previously ordered two cars WITHOUT ABS foolishly thinking I could threshold brake better than ABS in an emergency. HPDE taught me that I'm 50/50 at best

Also, hypocritical as this sounds, I have a sawstop table saw on my short list of upcoming "big" purchases (and I'm in the opposite camp on that "complacency" argument).

However, it is not complacency which prevents seeing some nut trying to go zooming past when you are backing-up. You just can't look both ways at once.

Consider brakes. I've been told by a guy who has driven Model Ts and such extensively that he drives anticipating brake failure. Perhaps that was once routine. Do any of us driving modern cars do it? No, we rely on the technology working.

I've only had the Grand Cherokee for a few weeks, but I find that the beep warning prompts me to look again to see if I've missed seeing something.

Another problem we have in California is the crazy motorcycle riders splitting lanes, and traveling way faster than surrounding traffic. Splitting is legal, although it should be outlawed, but going way faster is not. I've yet to learn how well the system works with motorcycles, but it seems that it should help.

The Sawstop is amazing to see in action.

Yep, if somebody is following too closely behind me, I open up more space in front of my vehicle. It seems that most wrecks on California freeways are caused by following too closely and failing to signal lane changes.

I have a sawstop table saw on my short list of upcoming "big" purchases

I'm jealous. I have a $3000 Unisaw loaded with features, so I can't justify buying a new one. Just make sure you turn off the saw stop feature when cutting moist wood or you will ruin a $100 dollar blade and have to fork out another $400 to replace the stop mechanism (although well worth the $$ to save a finger or two).

Yes it is worth it. If it saves you from fender bender once it will pay itself off.

On long highway trips ACC is so much help. I did also read in Popular Science magazine that this type of technology will be standard soon.

But ... I plan on keeping this car for a long time and do fair amount of highway driving. ACC for that reason alone is worth it for me. Extra 2500 over the life of the vehicle is not that much for me. In your case ... not sure... $50 per month seems to steep.

The JGC is a big truck with some pretty significant blind spots. I'm a very good driver (knocking in wood again) but I really appreciate having it. The ACC is wonderful for long trips. The front collision warning is a touch too sensitive even on the "near" setting but I'll take it. And the blind spot monitoring is really super nice. I don't think I would have chosen it had it not been the only choice available on the truck I wanted at the time I wanted it (I'm impatient) but I have no regrets at all about having it.

I actually chose the grand cherokee because of these advanced tech features. I ruled out all toyotas and hondas since they didnt have them except for their loaded minivans. My wifes 2004 Toyota Sienna had dynamic laser cruise control and it was great on trips to automatically keep the distance and speed up. I wanted that feature as well as the rest on any car i chose.

My 2014 overlamd has it and the blindspot is a great feature. it blinks when cars are beside me and beeps when my turn signals are on. I had a car turn left in front of me and the collisionmavoidance did its thing.

I considered the new cherokee and the infiniti jx35 also. Too bad the jeep dealers are not as bold as the volvo dealer i visited. they had a plastic barrel in back and the guy said go about 15 and it really worked. I like the parking sensors and the 8 inch screen for the camera is great.

You can go into the menus and allow your mirrors to tilt when you back up.
i also found how to prevent the horn from honking when i lock the car. (my neighbors probably appreciate that)